This invention relates to an automatic cable tie installation tool and more particularly to such a tool having a braking means for decelerating a cable tie being conveyed within the tool.
An automatic cable tie installation tool for affixing a self-locking cable tie about a bundle or wires or the like has recently been placed in service. This tool is the subject of commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 450,523, filed Mar. 12, 1974, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,946,769 and comprises a tool member and a remotely positioned cable tie dispenser interconnected by a flexible conveyor member or hose. A cable tie is propelled strap portion first from the dispenser by means of fluid pressure introduced behind the head of the cable tie and is received by a cable tie tube or chute in the tool member which guides the tie toward a pair of jaw members which in turn position the tie about the wires to be bundled. The tool member also includes a cable tie head stop disposed between the tube and the jaw members to limit movement of the cable tie head toward the jaw members thereby ensuring the head aperture is properly aligned to receive the leading end of the strap.
As the cycle of operation of the installation tool is very fast (less than a second elapses from the time the tool is actuated until the cable tie is tightened and the excess portion of the strap severed), the cable tie must be moved from the dispenser and through the hose and cable tie tube at relatively high velocity. It occasionally happens that upon impact with the stop, the head of the cable tie is damaged thereby making the tie unusable. It is also possible for a fragment of a shattered head to become lodged in the drive mechanism for the jaw members thereby jamming the tool and necessitating disassembly thereof.
It is also conceivable that as the jaw members move to tighten the tie about the wires, the cable tie head, due to the resiliency of the strap, might slide out of engagement with the stop and move slightly back into the cable tie tube. If this occurred, the head aperture would not be properly aligned to receive the strap and the strap could not be properly threaded.